Last Order
by Tehstrongsauce
Summary: An accounting of Cloud's and Zack's battle with Sephiroth in the Nibelheim reactor. Sometimes, a battle to the death can bring out one's true desperation. rated T for Violence and Gore. Oneshot.


"_Last Order"_

_A fan-fiction by Tehstrongsauce_

A/N: I'm proud to say that this is the first story I can say I've completed. Originally, it was going to be 2 chapters. I figured it would be easier to just merge them to create a oneshot. Enjoy.

* * *

**-Zack Fair**

My heart raced as I nimbly maneuvered through the opening room of the Nibelheim Reactor. Rolling under some pipes, I faced a crossroads as I contemplated my options.

I was on my hands and knees, staring down at the door far below. I frantically looked around for a way down. A rusty ladder stood to my left. "Not enough time." I mumbled to myself. Seeing no other route, I simply jump down. The distance would've killed anybody.

If they weren't pumped full of the finest Mako money could buy, that is.

I stuck a perfect landing, quickly springing up from a crouched position. Taking no time to celebrate my amazing physical abilities, I rushed into the Bio-Soldier chamber with my trusty Buster Sword in hand.

There he was, standing in front of the "Jenova" cell. Of course, I've had the pleasure of hearing him lovingly refer to it as "Mother's Prison" on multiple occasions. I gasped as I saw the body that lied a few meters away from me. "Tifa!!" I yelled. Forgetting that the enemy was in the same room, I rushed to her side. She was badly wounded in the abdomen, with traces of blood leaking from the edges of her mouth. "C-Cloud..." she managed to spurt out. "Tifa, I—TIFA!!!" I yelled as she lost consciousness. I checked her pulse and was relieved to find a pulse.

Letting Tifa rest, I jerked my line of vision to the monster that had caused all of this. I made brief eye-contact with him, sending a shudder down my spine as he walked into the cell.

I quickly ran up the crimson stairs, my eyes blind with rage. I slammed open the door and shouted his name.

"Sephiroth!!"

He didn't notice.

"SEPHIROTH!!" I screamed at him. He froze, standing still on the walkway.

"Heh... Ahah…HahahaHAHAHAH!!!!" Sephiroth began to laugh maniacally. He soon stopped and looked up to face the statue that guarded Jenova's Mako vat. "Mother…. Can you hear them? Can you hear the foolish cries of the traitors?" His voice grew fierce as he turned to me.

His eyes were cold and sharp, cutting through me like an iron sickle through wheat. "This is one of the fools that stole your land, Mother. The land that rightfully belongs to you!" He raised his hand and clenched a fist. I began to stumble as my windpipe clogged up. A smirk grew on Sephiroth's face as I continued to gasp for oxygen. What's happening to me!? Telekinesis!? Before I could tell what was happening, I was shot across the room.

This is it. I'm gonna die.

I'll hit the wall with full force, and my entire bone structure will collapse…

No. I'm forgetting one important thing.

I'm a First class SOLDIER.

I bent my knees as I hit the wall, running along it for a few seconds. When Sephiroth was directly to my right, I made a leap in his direction. I swung my sword down with great force, only to hear the clash of metal. Damn, this would be one hell of a fight.

We went on trading blows for what seemed to be hours on end. I was getting exhausted, but he hadn't slowed down one bit. He was too fast. Too fast to be human.

He wasn't human.

My chest was pounding. I was covered in sweat and blood. My arms trembled as I continued to barely block each blow. He showed no signs of stopping. I looked up at him. He… He was smiling.

Sephiroth made a strong helm-splitter slash, which I quickly blocked. We made eye-contact, stared each other down, and both made a large jump backwards.

I ran back up to him, swinging wildly, only to feel air. He back shuffled, just barely dancing out of my sword's reach. It was almost as if my blade just phased through him…

…Am I losing my mind?

Snapping back to reality, I discovered he was in fact far away from me. I pulled my gun out of its holster and began to fire blindly in his direction as a foolish last resort.

Bad choice, Zack. Bad choice.

I felt cold steel painfully slide through my now injured spine, slice through my stomach and break through the flesh of my chest.

"Putting down your sword is the same as letting go of your life." I heard his cold voice whisper, "Only a fool would trust his mortality to a firearm."

I opened my mouth to speak, but only a muffled cough came out. I looked down to see the Masamune retreat from my innards. I fell to the ground, my entire body shaking in fear.

Pain.

Pain was all I could feel.

The cold steel of the reactor would serve as my tomb. I closed my eyes, and accepted the consequence.

I had lost.

* * *

**-Cloud Strife**

I was blind with rage as I ran up the stairs to the Nibelheim Reactor.

The town was destroyed.

My family and friends were dead.

All that was left of me was pure hatred for the man -- no – the demon that had caused all of this. My once proud mentor:

Sephiroth.

I carefully maneuvered my way down to the bottom of the opening room. I could've simply jumped down, but unlike the other members of SOLDIER, I wasn't completely finished with Mako testing. But thinking of that now sickened me.

I hated it all: Shin-Ra, SOLDIER, Mako, everything. It took all I had from me, and now it was time to take it back.

The dark, red lights of the Bio-Soldier room burned my eyes, so I quickly lowered my visor to cover my face. I looked to my left to see a wounded Tifa. "T-Tifa!!" I ran over to her and kneeled down. She was breathing. "Thank God." I sighed.

"C—Cloud?" I heard a familiar voice say. I turned around.

"Zack?" I asked, my eyes set on his body sprawled across the floor. He used his last breaths to hand his sword to me.

"Cloud…Kill…Sephiroth."

He stopped breathing.

Zack Fair was dead.

I took the hefty blade from his hand and began to walk up the stairs.

I didn't care if I died anymore. I had to kill him.

I slammed open the door to the chamber He was in. I just stood there for a few seconds, staring at him. He was talking to that beast in the pod. His "Mother", Jenova.

I took off my helmet and dropped it into the vast chasm below, my naturally spiked blonde hair revealing itself.

I began to walk up to him, my footsteps echoing loudly.

I stood behind him and raised Zack's sword.

"Give it back." I said bluntly as I slashed at him.

"My home..." I slashed again.

"My Family…" and again, much harder this time.

"Zack… Tifa... Give it back!!!"

I tried to thrust into his back, only to realize he had been easily blocking each blow. It was almost as if all of the courage and zeal I had earlier had shriveled up and died.

I trembled in fear as I looked into his eyes.

A smirk spread across his face as I began to walk backward at a slow pace. He raised his hand, blue flames seeping from the tips of his fingers. He swung down and thrusted into my gut with startling force, causing me to cough up some blood. Things began to grow hazy. My head throbbed a dull pain.

I was on my knees, making it look as if I were begging Sephiroth for mercy. This couldn't work. He was virtually, all-around a better and more experienced warrior.

He raised his sword as I dropped mine.

The only sound I could hear was the steel of his blood soaked Masamune ripping through me.

I wasn't going to let him win. I had to kill him.

I looked up at him, causing much surprise.

"Wh-What are you!? Why aren't you dead!?" He yelled angrily. I didn't answer. He tried to swing the sword away, but my weight kept it down. I grabbed the blade with my right hand, then my left, and I slowly began to pull myself towards him. Pain seared through my body as the steel brushed against my organs. My palms were covered in blood, but I pushed onward. I finally reached the hilt of the blade…

I let go of the blade with my right hand…

..I looked up at him, made eye contact, and tightened my hand into a fist...

.. And I punched Sephiroth in the face.

**A/N:** So what do you guys think? Reviews are greatly appreciated and critique is welcomed. Thanks!


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